Scarlet Eternity
by Night's Fang
Summary: FMAxover. Kagome ponders her secret past, confusing present and unsure future in the rain. Kag?


**Disclaimer:** The animes Inu-Yasha, Full Metal Alchemist and their characters are sole property of their respective owners.

I own nothing besides the plot-line for this story.

**A/N:** I was bored, stressed, in a very weird mood, and in the need to write something to vent my frustration at life; so hence the random story. You don't need to tell me that I'm insane and need help, I already know that. But then all artists are a bit insane so I take it as a compliment. And yes the story is a Kagome-centric one and has a crossover pairing in here. Kagome?

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**Scarlet Eternity.**

It was very late in the afternoon. The day was approaching early evening. Dark clouds covered the entire area. Rain pelted down hard from the heavens drenching the scenery, incapacitating anyone from doing anything but take cover from the downpour. The ever-present heat-wave had abated and the weather had cooled down to that of a pleasant spring evening that comes when winter still leaves its traces in the air. Mist covered the landscape while the wind whipped through the trees. On the whole the early evening had a subtle, hazy, lethargic, pleasant, and yet wondrously lively feeling to it.

In the midst of the forest near the river bank a lone figure could be made out standing in the rain.

Eyelids gently fluttered open to reveal soft hazel, chocolate coloured eyes. A soft sigh escaped moist nude pink lips as the back of an athletic yet extremely feminine body connected with the bark of the tree to take the support of. A young face turned upwards to gaze gently at the heavens letting a few raindrops fall down pale cheeks.

Another sigh escaped young sixteen year old Kagome Higurashi as she allowed the rain to drench her to the bone. She always enjoyed these rare moments of solitude away from the others. Her escape from the mundane. And always savoured it greatly before Inu-Yasha came to whisk her back into the seemingly never ending quest for the remaining shards of the Shikon-no-Tama and Naraku's whereabouts to destroy him. Generally he would never let her out of his sight and so she always timed these temporary lapses of solitude whenever the inu-hanyou was visiting Kikiyo.

She would wait for the undead miko to be somewhere near and the inu-hanyou to go to her, then after a while she would leave as well. Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kirara assumed she was going to get Inu-Yasha back and let her go. She would find herself a nice spot to close her eyes and ponder on the events gone by. Or perhaps enjoy a peaceful rest surrounded by only nature. Or catch up on studies. And it was always after around approximately an hour that she would hear the all-to-familiar voice of Inu-Yasha calling out to her and berating her for going off alone again. She had even timed him once.

Sango would probably be tending to the soup in the tent. Shippo would be playing with the new yoyo she gave him while Kirara would be napping curled against the little kitsunes back. Miroku would probably be gazing at the rain pondering about his curse. Inu-Yasha was of course visiting Kikiyo since the undead miko was nearby. So she had some more time to herself.

When everyone had figured out that Kagome didn't go after Inu-Yasha every time he went after Kikiyo but off for her walks, none saw any harm in it. None of them bothered about it, all quoting the same idea about it being good to give her some space. Or that if Inu-Yasha could have the liberty of visiting his undead girlfriend whenever he pleased than Kagome should be allowed to go and sulk alone somewhere if she wanted to. They weren't in charge of her life. The first time Inu-Yasha had heard that he had thrown one of his tantrums.

A smirk formed on her delicate features as she thought about that. Inu-Yasha was so over-protective over her. It never failed to annoy and amuse her at the same time. It would annoy her because he was always restricting her life. Not allowing her to take so many of her tests at school. Not allowing her to visit her own home most of the time. Not allowing her to talk to Kouga or anyone else who tried flirting with her. He was always afraid of losing her love to another. Yet he didn't mind flaunting it to be with someone who should have long been dead. And she found the same thing amusing in a sick, twisted, sadistic way. And she wasn't in the least guilty about it. Heck she had even thought about perhaps one day going off alone with Kouga for a while when they bumped into each other the next time. Or perhaps taking Hojo up on his offer and dating him, just to see Inu-Yasha get nervous or mad and throw another tantrum.

But knowing Inu-Yasha if she did agree to go out with Hojo, she figured that he would probably bust in on their date and take her back to the feudal era, using the excuse of Naraku would get stronger if he collected the Shikon. That was something only he was capable of doing. And she wasn't keen on explaining to people in her time why Inu-Yasha had dog ears. They'd think she was of an unsound mind and that Inu-Yasha was a freak-of-nature. He was in as much danger in her time as she was in this era.

She remembered once how her brother had told her that in a way it seemed that she was living a fairy-tale or to be more appropriate a fantasy novel. Travelling through time and space. Having to go on a dangerous quest to gather a sacred treasure. Fighting an evil villain, whilst making friends along the way who joined her in the quest like the typical pervert and the stoic warrior woman. Falling in love, and getting stuck in bizarre love triangles. Souta really believed that his elder sister was a heroine and Inu-Yasha was her prince or white knight. She must've been having the adventure of her life. That was until their mother reminded him that reality wasn't as fantasy-based as he thought it was. Kagome had whole-heartedly agreed because she knew that though she may appear to be the time-travelling heroine of a feudal fairy tale, the real truth was far from that.

There was no sense of heroism, bravery or sense of thrill in her quest. Truthfully it was a sad, exhausting and repetitive. For her in a way it was a case of been there done that. A sick case of déjà vu; because this wasn't the first time something like this had happened to her. It wasn't the first time she had the fate of so many resting on her hands. It wasn't the first time she was in another realm chasing after a fabled jewel. It wasn't the first time her beliefs were shaken. It wasn't the first time she was faced against extraordinary beings with superhuman abilities. And it certainly wasn't the first time she'd fallen in love. She'd done it all before in even more confusing, frustrating, challenging, exhausting, gut-wrenching, and twisted conditions than these. Almost all the things that had happened to her in Sengoku Jidai had happened to her before in the most twisted ways.

She'd gone on a legendary quest, fought many battles, taken out superhuman enemies, had her soul snatched away from her, and fallen deeply into a love she knew would last more than a lifetime. Her adventure in Sengoku Jidai was just a repeat of her first adventure, the only difference being that she knew her first adventure was still incomplete.

The truth of the matter was that she just wasn't supposed to be here. She wasn't supposed to be chasing Naraku. She wasn't ever meant to meet Inu-Yasha. She wasn't supposed to become Shippo's adoptive mother, or Sango's and Miroku's younger sibling. She was in all actuality supposed to be in her time after her first adventure, trying to get back to the semblance she one held in her old life before she was pulled into it. Or even more logically she should've been still completing her first adventure.

Wasn't that what her cursed fate had wished for her?

She knew fate could be a cruel thing but she hadn't expected it so be satanic to her and force her to do the same thing all over gain in the most different way with comrades who were pure doppelgangers of her past ones. When the only thing she ever wanted in life was a place to belong to. A place she could fit in. That was the only thing she had ever wanted and fate had taken it away from her when she had finally found it. Maybe it was karma taking it's toll on her for all her sins.

Inu-Yasha would probably scoff if he heard this.

She remembered as a child how she had always felt alienated from the rest of the world. How she wished she would find the place where she could really be truly happy in. And then one day her five years ago her wish had come true, and she had been pulled into an adventure that would change her life and the way she looked at it forever. She was pulled into a different world and forced into a life she didn't want to lead. And after four years, when everything was half-way over. When things were beginning to clear out and settle down. When she had finally find the happiness, she searched for her whole life, she was whisked back to her own world. And barely six months later into Sengoku Jidai, wanting nothing but to return back.

She wanted to go back because she didn't belong here. Just like she didn't belong in the modern era anymore; and it's what kept slowly killing her from the inside. And she couldn't do anything about it. Nothing she did would change anything so she smiled and put up a mask. She put up a façade and pretended to be normal and happy among the doppelgangers of her old friends. She fooled them with her false smiles and fake laughter. It wasn't that she didn't like her new comrades; they were amazing friends, and really sweet people. But because she missed her past so much, there were times she couldn't face them without placing the faces of her old friends on them.

And she hated it.

Them and herself. She hated them because they were so much like her old friends. All of them. She hated them for making her to be something she clearly wasn't. She hated them for trusting her so much. And she hated herself for deceiving them.

She had never claimed to be innocent, pure, or naïve. They just assumed it.

Just like they assumed that she was gentle, loving, care-free, and noble. And once they had given her that image she had no choice but to stick to it. Just like she had to stick to the image of being Inu-Yasha's human living lover, Kikiyo's re-incarnation, her copy, and second preference to the original. A replacement. An imitation of the real thing. The last string of thoughts hit her bitterly.

She closed her eyes and sighed sadly realising the violent turn her thoughts were taking and tried to stop it. She shouldn't have even been thinking these thoughts, but she couldn't stop. Who was she kidding? She truly hated her life. She was living a lie. A lie that was forced upon her.

Fate had deceived her.

But then again wasn't she the one who had lied to everyone? Wasn't she the one deceiving everyone else? Wasn't she the one that had chosen to live this lie? Wasn't she also being untrue to Inu-Yasha just like he was to her? Wasn't she the one using him as a replacement lover because he was somewhat of an imitation of her own former lover? Wasn't she using him, just like Inu-Yasha used her to replace Kikiyo? Wasn't she the one using all of them for her own selfish purposes?

After all she had the choice earlier of refusing to collect the sacred jewel and help Inu-Yasha from the beginning and going right back home and back to her school-life. But she didn't. Instead she agreed to help him.

Why?

Why did she agree to be Inu-Yasha's shard detector? Why did she agree to become Sango's and Miroku's younger sister? Why did she agree to become Shippo's adoptive mother? Why had she agreed to help defeat Naraku? Why hadn't she just left and never returned? Why hadn't she just sealed the well when she had the chance? She had asked herself these questions so many times before always hoping for an answer that would make this lie seem worthwhile.

And just like all those times before the answer came to her in her mind and made everything seem to be as clear as crystal. No doubt it was a selfish reason but it was one that gave her the strength to continue.

**_Atonement._**

That's why she stayed. That's why she still remained Inu-Yasha's shard detector. That's why she became family to Miroku, Sango, and Shippo. And that's why she made Naraku her most top-listed enemy. She saw this as a chance to atone for all the sins of her dark past.

Dark Past.

That seemed to be something that no one would ever link to the seemingly warm, loving, tender, gentle, lovable, kind-hearted, pure, innocent, care-free Kagome Higurashi. Someone like her couldn't have a dark past. She was the last person one would assume to have a mysterious past and yet she did.

She, the kind-hearted, gentle, loving, tender, whatever good qualities she was famous for possessing Kagome Higurashi had a dark past filled with deceit, treachery and her current adventure only severed to add to that void.

Though they couldn't be seen, her body still bore the scars of the countless battles she had fought serving to remind her of them till she had no choice but to cover and hide them from the eyes from everyone else. And her body still continued to add more scars to it with every current battle.

Her heart still bore the sorrow, grief and pain of the horrors she had witnessed and that of loss of so many innocents which now lay suppressed under her happy façade. And everyday more grief, sorrow and pain etched into her already fragile heart on seeing even more unnecessary death.

Her mind was still haunted by torturous nightmares of unspeakable horrors that could drive one to the point of insanity and suicide most of which had been committed by her own hands. And with every passing day new images were added to her subconscious which would soon haunt her.

Her hands were covered in blood, and still continued to be covered in blood. Scarlet blood that would always leave lasting impressions on her hands.

Her past. It would always be a void full of sins and covered by a liquid curtain of scarlet blood. Because it was her past. Her Dark Scarlet Past. And it would always overshadow her present and future.

And that was the reason why she still stayed in the Sengoku Jidai helping Inu-Yasha, Miroku, Sango, Kirara, Shippo defeat Naraku, gathering the fragments of the Shikon-no-Tama.

She became a Priestess to atone for the sins she had committed as an Alchemist. The Scarlet Alchemist.

She sacrificed herself for her friends in the Sengoku Jidai to make up for betraying her friends back in Asmestris.

She would keep all the promises she made to undo the broken promises and hopes that she had given the seven deadly Homunculi who hoped to become human and had placed all their trust in her.

She collected the shards of the Shikon and protected it from all evil and greedy intentions. She would stop the wide-spread killing rampage of Naraku to attain it. Just to make up for what she did back in Asmestris in her pursuit of the Philosophers Stone and her own attempts to create it.

She would defeat Naraku to nullify her failure at stopping a once newly risen Dante from executing her plan and using her.

She would mend Kikiyo's clay body whenever it was injured. So that she could make up for losing her body into The Gate while trying to open it on one of her first experiments when she first leanrned Alchemy and creating a Homunculi body and sealing her soul inside that body.

She would listen to Inu-Yasha's sometimes insane rants about offering her body to Kikiyo after the jewel is completed so he can be with both of them in the same woman. So that perhaps one day she could make up for committing the ultimate sin of merging her Homunculi body with her human body when she found it inside The Gate. Making herself a perfect chimera of the two a year back.

She would allow herself to be called Kikiyo's re-incarnation to nullify the wrongdoing of first trapping the miko's soul into her body in a moment of doubt when her alchemy opened The Gate and pulled her into it threatening to rip apart her mind, body, and soul – which it did in the end – while she tried to make the Homunculi human. It was during that incident that she had passed out and awakened to find herself back at Sunset Shrine in her mothers care but not before promising to somehow return one day. And her lover had promised he would wait for her.

She would correct Miroku's lecherous ways whenever she could to save Sango the hurt in order to make up for never doing that for Riza Hawkeye when Roy Mustang did the same.

And she would force herself to love Inu-Yasha unconditionally, unrequitedly, desperately, with all the patience, faith, virtue, and everything else she had to atone for betraying the same love given to her by another. Another a lot like the silver haired inu-hanyou, similar in features and ways. One who had been somewhat of an outcast as a child. Someone who had never known the love of a father. Someone who had lost his mother at a very tender age. Someone who was forced to grow up and shoulder the many responsibilities of an adult when they should have been enjoying themselves. Someone who had so many bad memories of the past that weren't meant to leaves any traces in the present or the future.

The only difference between them was that while Inu-Yasha allowed those memories to cast a shadow over his present and future, _he_ had not.

While Inu-Yasha would always occupy himself in what had happened in the past or what could happen in the future _he_ would never do that. Instead _he_ would live in the present. The here and now.

While Inu-Yasha mostly still blindly ran into a fight without a plan, _he_ could the same because he had the uncanny ability to strategise on his feet.

And while Inu-Yasha's honey-amber-golden orbs would always hold uncertainty, despair and doubt most of the time, _his_ sun-yellow-golden eyes would shine with pure confidence and hope. Maybe that's why she always loved _him_ more.

That's why she would always love the Full Metal Alchemist more than she would ever love the Inu-Hanyou. Because while looking into Inu-Yasha Tashio would always fill her with confusion, doubt, uncertainty and despair, looking into Edward Elric's eyes would fill her with the opposite emotions. Looking into those sun-yellow gold eyes would fill her with warm strong hope not a fragile thread of it.

Hope for being able to put the past behind.

Hope for a better future.

Hope to be able to love.

Hope to live again.

She remembered that it was the same hope that brought her out of the brink of death in Asmestris. And it was through that same hope and understanding that, her then sinful life, numbed by pain – that inflicted on her and that which she inflicted on others – had been able to come out of the darkness and feel again. And it was because of that hope and understanding which he had shown her she was able to recognise the growing love for her in his eyes and accept it and return it.

Edward had taught her how to live again. How it felt like to have a family. How good it felt to have someone to care for you. He had taught her all the lessons of life once again. He had taught her how nice it felt to fall asleep watching the stars. How warm the early morning rising sun felt on her face. How beautiful the sunset could be. How much fun it was to dance in the rain. The joy of playing in the snow. The happiness of waking up in the morning a bit cramped up in your favourite chair after falling asleep on it the previous cold night while you were engrossed in reading a book. How beautiful and calming nature could be. How beautifully blue the sea could be. He taught her how it felt like to wake up knowing that there was someone or the other thinking about her.

And he taught her how to love again. Love with all her body, mind, heart and soul. Love with everything she had. And how to return someone else's love.

And he did all this without asking anything in return, except she always be happy and nothing more. He did all of it for someone like her who had committed so many sins. Because he loved her.

Because Edward didn't cared that she wasn't human anymore. And when she fused her fourteen year old human body preserved in a cryogenic state inside The Gate – like Al's – for five years with her then current Homunculi body becoming a chimera of the two he had hardly bothered. He didn't care that when she had first arrived in Asmestris her body was used to experiment against and that she now had red water fused with her blood making her body capable of creating a massive Philosophers Stone. He didn't bother that she was a State Alchemist once tearing down the system from inside and causing chaos in Asmestris while he and Al were on the other side of The Gate tracking down the Uranium bomb. He didn't care that came through a time-lapse in The Gate. He didn't bother that her hands had indulged in massive bloodshed to create the Philosopher's Stone or that she was once controlled by Dante. He never bothered that was working with the seven other deadly Homunculi.

He hadn't cared about any of that, neither did Al, Winry, Pinako, Roy, Riza, or the others. Because according to all of them whatever she had done was in her past. And because she was regretting it, it proved that she was indeed a good person. According to them her will to help the Homunculi without any gaining any profit from it proved she had her heart in the right place and nothing anyone else could say would deter them from this line of thinking.

But no one did hate her. No one begged to differ with their views. Everyone accepted her as she was. That's why she loved all of them, and that's why she felt like she had betrayed all of them and would continue to betray them. That's why she wanted to go back. But she couldn't. The Gate wouldn't ever open for her ever again because she was an incomplete being. She had her own mind, memories and body but was using the soul of another.

And that was the reason she was now here in the Sengoku Jidai searching for the Shikon-no-tama the fabled wish granting jewel, fighting against Naraku, to help atone for all her sins. Atone for everything she had done in the past. Because she knew once this adventure was over maybe she would be able to make peace with her past. And she knew for a fact that once her adventure in Sengoku Jidai was over she would finally be able to have her greatest wishes come true.

The Shikon-no-tama could make any wish come true. It could make multiple wishes come true and she would use it. After Naraku was defeated and they finally gathered the Shikon-no-tama, everything would have become all right, and they would all make their own wishes upon the Shikon-no-tama.

Sango would wish for her brother to be given back to her. Miroku would now wish to still have his cursed black hole, but have the ability to control it and not have it take his life of the lives of his descendants. And then they'd give the Shikon-no-tama to her to wish upon it before giving it to Inu-Yasha, because they knew that there was a chance Inu-Yasha might wish for Kikiyo to be given a human body and her soul back.

And she would finally do it. She would make a wish before Inu-Yasha did. But she would save him the guilt of feeling that he betrayed Kagome's love by wanting Kikiyo to be back so she would simultaneously wish for Kikiyo to be alive as a human once again with her own soul back. And then Kagome would wish to regain her own soul back from where it was trapped – inside the confines of The Gate and then no longer be a Miko but once again the Scarlet Alchemist. And then she would bid her farewell to everyone before going back to Asmestris taking the Shikon with her, giving Inu-Yasha his lover back.

Then she would finally be able to stop living a lie. Her past would no longer cast a shadow over her present and future. She would finally make peace with it. Then her smiles would finally be true; and her laughter ring happily. Her eyes would finally shine with true joy.

No longer would she lament about not being among her old friends because she would be surrounded by them. She would finally be amongst all the people she loved and where she truly belonged. She would finally be able to see Al, Winry, Pinako, Den, Roy, Riza, Havoc, Breda, Gracia, Elisia, Falmen, Armstrong, and the Homunculi. She would finally be able to place bets with the others when Roy and Riza ever got together. Pal up with Winry and experiment with auto-mail, and tinker with electronics and gadgets like they usually did. Spar with Envy, Greed, Wrath, Ed, and Al like she would always do. Help Winry chase the brothers around for fun.

She would be having fun once again. She would be _living_ once again.

No longer would her smiles be fake whenever she visited her own home or the Sengoku Jidai from Asmestris. No longer would she be deceiving her friends in Sengoku Jidai.

No longer would her fragile heart fill with hurt but be overflowing with hope, love and happiness, Edward twirling her as they both danced in the rain smiling goofily and then staying in the bed together the next day sick.

And no longer will she and Inu-Yasha be shadows of former lovers to each other but true lasting friends. Inu-Yasha would finally have Kikiyo back and she would finally be in Edward's strong arms.

But till then she'd have to wait it out.

"Kagome!" Inu-Yasha's voice called out shattering the soothing calm the pattering of the rain had created. "Come on wench! Don't you know it's dangerous to come out here in the wilderness by yourself?!" he said in his usual gruff insulting manner. She looked in his direction to see him standing a few trees away from her in the pathway, his silver hair and red haori drenched. His silver dog ears clapped tightly against his head, honey-amber golden orbs shining dully with annoyance, scowl in place. Her sixty minutes were up and it was time to get back to the mundane.

"Coming Inu-Yasha." She called out softly before turning back to take in the beautiful scenery in front of her one last time.

Taking a deep breath she looked up at the heavens and lifted a small hand catching a few raindrops. "Wait for me Ed. I'll come back soon. Then we'll be together for eternity." She whispered softly to the heavens before turning around and walking towards Inu-Yasha once again to resume the roll of the Miko.

Somewhere far away separated by a barrier of worlds a drenched young man with long sun-blonde hair and sun-yellow gold eyes looked up at the grey pouring heavens with warm eyes as if he had heard the soft words the girl in the other world had whispered.

"I know Kagome. And I'll wait for you. Come back soon so that we can be together for eternity." He whispered as he caught a few raindrops.

"What was that brother?" a gentle low male voice asked. A man with honey brown hair and silver optics looked at the blonde.

"Nothing Al." Edward Elric said smiling. "Just talking to Kagome." He said going back to looking at the scenery with a warm yet goofy grin that he normally had on his face whenever he saw or heard the raven haired Scarlet Alchemist.

Owari!

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**A/N:** Kagome Higurashi/Edward Elric. So how was it?

Like I said I was in a very weird mood when I wrote this so excuse me. I hope there aren't any typos.

Anyways leave a note telling me your thoughts about his little one-shot.


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